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Poster: gary glauberman Date: Jan 22, 2015 10:46am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Wharf Rat lyrics

6-24 at Tower Theater in Philadelphia, in Wharf Rat Garcia sings the line- "half of my life I spent doing time for some motherfuckers crime", instead of ...."other fuckers crime". Are there other instances of this change?

Also: in The Annotated Lyrics the opening line to Wharf Rat reads:
Old man down
way down
down, down by the docks of the city……….

In A Box of Rain by Hunter the opening line is:
Wharf rat down
way down..….

Has anything been written on this subject

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Poster: stratocaster Date: Jan 22, 2015 11:45am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

strange you should ask, Dr. Alan Newstead of St. Clara College of the Meaningless Arts, just released a revised working of his 1982 dissertation entitled "Wharf Rat Down: A study in the cause and conflict of August West and the role of the Motherfucker"...it's a good 500 pages, but look it up here on the Archive for further study

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Poster: SomeDarkHollow Date: Jan 22, 2015 12:05pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

This brings to mind the landmark study that was done at MIT in the late 80's where they looped Wharf Rat backwards and played it through a state of the art sonic analyzer. After reviewing the results they found you can hear Phil distinctly say "The Motherfucker is Bob".

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Poster: Earl B. Powell Date: Jan 22, 2015 12:19pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Glad you cleared that up. Rumor had it for a while it was Bob saying "Jerry is the Walrus."

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Poster: SomeDarkHollow Date: Jan 22, 2015 12:21pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Oh, that one. I believe it came from a live recording of a show in 85, and it wasn't "the walrus", it was "a walrus".

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Poster: William Tell Date: Jan 22, 2015 3:01pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Ah, hats off to you three today...

That was well played, all around; thanks to strat for starting us down that path, and the excellent follow up by SDH & Earl...

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Poster: SomeDarkHollow Date: Jan 22, 2015 3:18pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Yeah, today was a good day.

Take a few relatively Dead related posts and turn them into fodder for pointless, albeit entertaining at times, self-serving off-shoots.

Yay, us.

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Poster: William Tell Date: Jan 22, 2015 3:20pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

You know, truly; after the band is DEAD and gone (which we've proved with geometric logic on these very pages for well on ten years), what's left...but...but...us, eh?

Well, of course; and the truth is--we go on and on...and on.

As it should be I suppose.

I think Jerry might actually have agreed with this view.

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Poster: SomeDarkHollow Date: Jan 22, 2015 3:28pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

When do we get OUR 50th anniversary blow out?

Start planning now...or after the buffet closes.

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Poster: William Tell Date: Jan 22, 2015 4:03pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Didn't want to rain on "our" parade, but you missed one:

"...played thru the art sonic system (not 'analyzer'), ASS..."

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Poster: Dudley Dead Date: Jan 22, 2015 1:35pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Boy did you ask for it ! Troll party !
I think the original line was "motherfucker" as Garcia claimed it was the first clearly audible use of the word in a Rock song, though I too though at times it was "other fucker's " , same meaning though . And I think Garcia always sang it as "Old man down".

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Poster: high flow Date: Jan 22, 2015 1:48pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

RDS. Rapid Downward Spiral.

I believe I have heard it both ways too. Sorry but I do not have specific dates to recommend.

In regards to the opening lyrics, Jerry often made subtle changes to the lyrics to suit his own phrasing. You hear this with the Hunter songs, the Dylan songs and the traditional tunes.

Craig Stadler was the only guy proven to be a walrus. But I always suspected the digit was lost in a freak propeller accident....and then there's those pics of him diving....and the jelly fish sting....the evidence mounts.

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Poster: SomeDarkHollow Date: Jan 22, 2015 3:30pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Wow. Amazing job of combining a relevant answer with a contribution to the pointless rambling.

100 bonus points.

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Poster: high flow Date: Jan 22, 2015 3:34pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

The phrasing of songs and the altering of lyrics is important too.

But I hear ya, this walrus angle has legs. Remember that shirtless thread....yeah, no pics of Jerry.

From Wiki:

"Walruses are relatively long-lived, social animals, and they are considered to be a "keystone species" in the Arctic marine regions."

Jerry loved the Keystone. Freaky!

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Poster: William Tell Date: Jan 22, 2015 4:02pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Ha! "Keystone" species!

You rang my Phd in ecology bell...

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Poster: Diamondhead Date: Jan 22, 2015 4:19pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

This predates Jefferson Airplane's Volunteers album?

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Poster: Dudley Dead Date: Jan 22, 2015 9:15pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

I can't recall the details of the interview exactly (might have been from the "Signpost to a New Reality" book of 2 long interviews ?) , but his claim was though their friends in JA were first, their "motherfuckers" wasn't all that clear, rather buried , and the one in Wharf Rat is clearly said . Jerry's point is certainly arguable, but I think it does show the intended lyric was mother not other ...maybe not all the time (?) .

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Poster: johnnyonthespot Date: Jan 23, 2015 9:48am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

I disagree. The word in question re: the Airplane( we can be together )vs. GD ( Wharf Rat ) is the word FUCK, the " mother" part wasn't a part of that particular point in any interview I've read. And it sounds like he says Mother from time to time but OTHER is the lyric and pretty much what I hear the majority of versions. And on a side note thank God Garcia dropped down by the docks of the RIVER, docks of the city puts the song in S.F. ( at least to me ) and brings Jerry into the song as if he actually experienced and wrote it which I like. The Wharf rat on Skull and Roses was one of the first songs to turn me on to the power of the band and why they were special before I had even seen them yet.

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Poster: bluedevil Date: Jan 23, 2015 10:05am
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

Agreed re that version - really showed me a depth of emotion I wasn't experiencing in other stuff then listening to.

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Poster: Dudley Dead Date: Jan 23, 2015 12:00pm
Forum: GratefulDead Subject: Re: Wharf Rat lyrics

You know, you maybe right about his point being about "fuck" . Maybe I have it backwards . There are times I wished the fuck was not in the song, not from prudishness, but that it was meathead crowd bait ("Jerry said fuck , YEAHH") , of course it is a ROCK show, people don't listen to what the song is about, so I will shut my snobby ass up .
On a more serious note, I too had your experience with the song . I remember riding in the back seat of my friend's car, and hearing that S&R version and really being hit by it . Always love the opening. When the song is done well, it is a very great song . I'm move by the the "I'll get up and fly away" . Here this doomed bum, for a few romantic seconds makes you almost believe he will .